When I first signed on the for the Race, fundraising was what intimidated me the most. Traveling to 11 countries with a bunch of people I had just met? Fine. Living out of a backpack? Fine. Raising over $16,000? Whoa, whoa, whoa, let’s not get too far ahead of ourselves here. Maybe this isn’t the greatest idea after all…
But it’s been over 6 months since I’d been accepted, and fundraising isn’t so terrifying anymore. I won’t say it’s easy – it’s presented its fair share of challenges and I knew what I was getting into – but it’s not impossible. So, without further ado, here are 11 things I’ve learned about fundraising (so far).
- 99% of ideas are worth trying. It’s better to have fundraised and failed than to have never made the attempt at all. Something is always better than nothing, and small amounts add up. My fundraisers have included events, sales, letters, and I even took scrap metal to be recycled. It all comes together in the end.
- Aim high. When I was selling t-shirts, I initially had a goal of selling 25. Someone wisely advised me to shoot for 50, and I did, which resulted in raising twice as many funds as I would have otherwise.
- You will be pleasantly surprised. I wrote letters to any family member whose address I could find, in the hope that some would respond. I then received a letter back from my great-aunt Nancy who I’d never met before. She had donated towards my race and told me about her heart for missions. Two of my mom’s friends from when she went to college donated as well, which I had never expected.
- You will be astounded. I didn’t think that a garage sale would be my most successful fundraiser to date, but it was. The number of people who came to the sale over the two days we held it amazed me – there was never a “dead” time when no one was there throughout the seven hours. In addition, only a small amount of the almost $1,200 we raised came from donations. I guess we just had a lot of things to sell (and it gave us a good opportunity to clear out our house)
- Creativity yields high rewards. With the help of the Roberts Wesleyan community and some dedicated friends, I held a coffeehouse and silent auction event at the school. We put together themed baskets, asked for donations for the auction, found people to play music. It was a great night, I got to tell people more about the race and why I decided to go, and we raised $500 in a two-hour event.
- But not everything will be successful. I tried selling bracelets and I did an “$11 on the 11th” fundraiser. They weren’t a complete bust, but I had secretly hoped for more. All you can do is appreciate what you got from it, no matter the amount, and move on from there.
- Sometimes you need to take a break. I’ve been told that the World Race is a marathon rather than a sprint, and that applies to fundraising too. It’s easy to get burned out or discouraged, but sometimes all it takes is to scale back or just take a break completely for a little while.
- Deadlines can be the best motivator. It’s easy to feel discouraged when no one seems to be donating, but the fact is a lot of people wait until the end. I’ve heard dozens of stories of Racers who were sure they wouldn’t be able to go to training camp or launch, until the right amount of funds came in at the eleventh hour. (Including some of my own squad mates)
- You may feel guilty sometimes. $16,000 is a lot of money. I’ve struggled a good amount with guilt and the desire to live up to perceived expectations from the people who have given me money. But as long as I’m being honest, humble, and authentic, I know I should feel grateful, not guilty.
- It can consume you if you’re not staying alert. When I started fundraising, I focused too much on it. It overshadowed the reasons I was going on the race for the first place, and I practically made it into an idol. (That’s right, I said the I-word). It took a lot of soul-searching, prayer, and changes in perspective to get out of the rut I put myself in, but I learned from it, albeit the hard way.
- Fundraising is a team sport. My family organized the garage sale. Classmates from college shared my blog, videos, and t-shirt sales on social media. A small task-force of good friends helped me put together my silent auction. My old a cappella group let me talk about the race at their most recent concert. I could go on. Partnerships are the key to success in fundraising, both in practical help/ideas, and moral support.
Speaking of fundraising, I am happy to announce I am at 66% of my funding! My next goal is to be at 75% before I come back from training camp on July 19th. That’s about $1,500 more in a little less than a month. If you are interested in helping me reach this goal, click the “support me” tab on the left to donate online or mail a check with “for Sarah Michel” in the memo line to:
Adventures in Missions
P.O. Box 742570
Atlanta, GA 30374-2570
As always, thanks for reading! I have 20 days until training camp and 70 to launch – and you can subscribe to blog updates to receive an email notification when there’s a new post.
